detected; detecting; detects
1
: to discover the true character of
detecting drug smugglers
2
: to discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
detect alcohol in the blood
Do I detect a note of sarcasm in your voice?
3
: to work as a detective
Examples of detect in a Sentence
The test is used to detect the presence of alcohol in the blood.
This type of cancer is difficult to detect in its early stages.
Recent Examples on the Web
Seismometers, such as the ones placed on the moon’s near side during the Apollo era, will be left at the south pole to determine whether moonquakes can be detected on the far side.
—
Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 21 Feb. 2026
Raman spectroscopy scanned multiple points across the film to detect structural damage.
—Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 21 Feb. 2026
As bassist Ian Hill points out, since the alleged (and in fact non-existent) messages were subliminal, they were being asked to prove that something which couldn’t be detected wasn’t there.
—Catherine Bray, Variety, 20 Feb. 2026
Artificial intelligence may help medics detect sepsis earlier.
—Harriet Marsden, TheWeek, 20 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for detect
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 21 Feb. 2026
Raman spectroscopy scanned multiple points across the film to detect structural damage.
—Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 21 Feb. 2026
As bassist Ian Hill points out, since the alleged (and in fact non-existent) messages were subliminal, they were being asked to prove that something which couldn’t be detected wasn’t there.
—Catherine Bray, Variety, 20 Feb. 2026
Artificial intelligence may help medics detect sepsis earlier.
—Harriet Marsden, TheWeek, 20 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for detect
Cite this Entry
“Detect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detect. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
detect
verb
de·tect
di-ˈtekt 
: to discover the nature, existence, presence, or fact of
detect the approach of an airplane
detection
noun
-ˈtek-shən
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
